DevOps, like project management software, is great in theory but it also adds another layer to an existing process and requires a certain amount of time to get up to speed on and to nuture the habit of using it.

I think you may be right Brian. Startups are agile to begin with, while shifting to a DevOps model in an established IT organization faces a lot of challenges, perhaps making actual gains more elusive.

Marcia, good point and I have a feeling that new IT organizations that are successful, have a solid business model and deliver high value apps, don't activity consider the level of DevOps in their model, because from the beginning, their firms were born into the DevOps model.

As for old firms, some IT organizations have attempted to focus on building competency around the spectrum (non-specialization model), rather than, out-source support function to the Cloud with firms that own economies of scale and focusing on their core specialization. This results in a situation where the organization is dealing with multiple layers, and they can't focus on their core competency -- making DevOps, to only look good on paper.

The DevOps promises of communication and collaboration are certainly promising, but according to an InformationWeek DevOps survey released early this year, adoption so far has been sort of tepid and the results mixed.

A firm can lock their programmers into a room, hand over a list of desired functions and set a deadline. The result will be a software that works (at times), because neither would the programmers fully understand the problems that the software is trying to address, and neither can the firm foresee and create a comprehensive list of desirable functions because, functions, requirements and objectives, evolve with time.

DevOps can bridge these gaps by using communication and collaboration between the teams that are creating the software and the teams that will be utilizing/operating it.

Our latest survey shows growing demand, fixed budgets, and good reason why resellers and vendors must fight to remain relevant. One thing's for sure: The data center is poised for a wild ride, and no one wants to be left behind.